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Thursday, September 11, 2008

Going to school in the area of "Toronto" (really more Scarborough) that I do means that I share a lot of classes with people recently immigrated from China. It's such a great opportunity for me: I'm a culture junkie (especially with all things Asian) and befriending those around me in my program is a great way for me to learn about what it's like both as a new Canadian and as an Asian in general. Many of them are here on their own, either as students fresh out of highschool or here after leaving their families (and sometimes children) back home in order to upgrade their education. Most of them have very high-level degrees and years of work experience in other fields behind them, and I'm learning a lot about life in general when we talk! Today I noticed one of the girls eating a custard-like dumpling and I asked her what it was, it looked like a sweet version of the steamed buns I had made but the covering was a little different. She told me it was a mooncake that her mom had sent her, and I knew I had to find out something about them!

Turns out that for many Asians around the world, the fifteenth day of the eighth moon (or September 14 this year) is a night of celebration. Marking the abundance of the harvest, the moon festival is full of parades, dancing and eating in many communities. Moon cakes are traditionally given out as gifts to family and friends, and are stuffed with adzuki bean paste. The symbolism is that of luck and good fortune. Apparently, rum-raisin, Oreo, cream cheese, tiramisu, cappuccino, fruit, and Cognac-flavoured fillings are available too.

The stories behind the moon festival are widely varied, from what I can find out, but this website seems to have a good reference point. I also found a mooncake recipe in one of the old garage-sale cookbooks I own, so I figured I'd share it here too! I've added links to some of the "weirder" ingredients, for reference.